U.S. Pat. No. 4,282,006 discloses a unique, carbonaceous slurry which, despite the fact that it contains at least 55 weight percent of solid material, is readily pumpable and has a relatively low viscosity. The slurry described in this patent has outstanding stability properties, and it can be burned without being dewatered.
The slurry described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,282,006 contains at least one dispersing agent. In order to be economically competitive, the price of said slurry should be competitive with the price of an equivalent amount of fuel oil. To that end, the amount of the dispersing agent in the slurry should be minimized, for the dispersing agent is generally one of the more expensive components of the slurry.
It is thus an object of this invention to provide a process for producing a carbonaceous slurry with properties substantially as good as those of the slurry of U.S. Pat. No. 4,282,006 wherein the amount of dispersing agent used in preparing such a slurry is substantially reduced.